


He Hated the Whip

by FireDragon1321



Category: Pocket Monsters | Pokemon (Anime), Pocket Monsters | Pokemon - All Media Types
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Animal Abuse, Ash Adopts the PETAmon Because Why Not?, Ash is Ten Folks, Because Have You Seen the OS or Was it Just Me, Bonus Fluff and Headcanons, But Not Used in the Erotic Sense, Child Abuse, Female Pronouns for Pidgeotto Because I Said So, Kanto Era, Male Pronouns for Pikachu as His Gender is Confirmed, Male Pronouns for the Kanto Starters as They’re Confirmed in the Dub, Mention of Mario But It’s Only Like a Sentence or Two, Pokemon Abuse, Some Mild Implied Stuff About Fiction and Reality Because My Hand Slipped, Temperamental and Impulsive Ash, Whips, semi-au
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-01-08
Updated: 2020-01-08
Packaged: 2021-02-27 11:33:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,627
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22166431
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/FireDragon1321/pseuds/FireDragon1321
Summary: Ash wakes up in a strange place. The people here have deemed him unfit to train Pokemon. They want something else from him instead. They want to spread an important message- and they'll beat him black and blue to do it.AKA- The result of a slippery slope involving a comment chain on some cool artwork, which in turn was inspired by a Pokemon flash game made by PETA. Please check out this comic, holy Arceus- https://www.deviantart.com/matsu-sensei/art/What-have-I-become-331432553
Comments: 6
Kudos: 35





	He Hated the Whip

**Author's Note:**

  * Inspired by [What Have I Become? (artwork)](https://archiveofourown.org/external_works/548836) by Matsu-sensei. 



> So this has a long story.  
> I found some site called 4AllMonKind. To quote my deviantArt- “They're selling posters including ones that say "Keep Your Stones to Yourselves- Forced Evolution is ASSAULT" with a sad Eevee hiding from a bunch of people with evolution stones. Oh yea, and they also have one that say that they taught you the classic Fire/Water/Grass type advantage triangle so that you don't know that "Pokemon Beats Man", with the Kanto starters attacking a human face. I'd link to them since the posters were actually well-made, but I don't know their deal. I'm not sure if it's a parody/troll of Pokemon, making fun of social extremists (i.e.- the Tumblr mentality) or if it's some kind of social extremist allegory. In the last case, I don't want to give them any more attention…”  
> Finding those people reminded me of the PETA Pokemon game that came out around the time of Black and White’s release, in which you play as Pikachu and the Unova starters and beat up human characters from the Gen V games and Ash to “liberate yourselves”. I played twice (via alternate sites to avoid giving PETA traffic) ages ago. Around that time, I found a comic someone drew of the final confrontation with Ash, where- in the middle of telling Pikachu he “doesn’t care about him”- stops, breaks down, cries, and gives his buddy a hug. It’s all very feels-inducing. You can find the comic as the inspiration link (because I won’t link to PETA’s site), but I will link to it again here- https://www.deviantart.com/matsu-sensei/art/What-have-I-become-331432553  
> The downward spiral continued as I flicked through the comments and found one person mentioned the following- “The PETA label in his hat...he was totally just doing this because they forced him to. I'm picturing some PETA jerk jumping in and yelling "CUT! Ash, what are you doing!? You're supposed to beat your best friend up so that we can prove a point!”. The plot bunny (not the PETA bunny) popped into my head because that’s completely my jam for writing angst, and here we are.  
> This fanfic actually made me cry while writing it because the PETAmon + background sad music on TV = teary-eyed author. I just- ugh! I love Pokemon, okay?  
> I write too much angst, ugh. Anyway, here’s some angst with a happy/fluffy ending, because that makes it slightly better. There’s also some bonus happier stuff in the ending note. I also watched this piece of trash game as a Let’s Play on Youtube to do research because I forgot some stuff.  
> Also hey- another angst with a happy ending story where I torture a favorite character and then let them go free! I haven’t done one with Sora yet. Hm…  
> Pokemon is not mine. The original artwork is not mine. The comment is not mine. The story is mine. PETA can jump off a cliff.

Ash didn’t know how he ended up here. One minute, he was setting up camp with Misty and Brock, with Pikachu already asleep. The next, he was in a dark cell with only one barred window. Pikachu was nowhere in sight. Neither was his belt, which contained his other Pokemon. His clothes were also missing, save for his underwear. He searched around for his cherished hat, but couldn’t find it. He searched for his Pokemon, too, but also couldn’t find them.

After pacing around his cell for an undetermined length of time, Ash began to get hungry. As if on cue, the door swung open. In stepped a man wearing a white lab coat with a strange animal on the left breast that looked vaguely like Pikachu. He held a slim weapon in his other hand. 

Ash remembered the beginning of his journey, and the Trainer named AJ. He used that weapon. Seeing it now made Ash uneasy, but he kept on a brave face.

“Who are you?” Ash demanded. “What do you want from me? Where did you take Pikachu?”

The man just smirked. It was an ugly smirk that made Ash feel more than uncomfortable. “We need you to make the world a better place,” he replied. “You do as you’re told, and nothing bad will happen to you. Here’s what happens if you’re a cheeky shit and ask questions.”

Before Ash could say or do anything else, the whip cracked loudly and struck him across the face. He screamed in agony, clutching his cheek. It felt raw and tender. The skin wasn’t broken by the strike, but he could tell that the whip was more than capable of doing so if it pleased. So that’s what a whip strike felt like. He wanted to run all the way back to AJ and punch him in the face.

“Come,” the man ordered.

Ash followed him wordlessly out of the cell. The world outside the little, dark room was almost too bright. People were going back and forth to different rooms down a long hallway. One room had a picture of a chubby man in a suit that looked like a Sentret on the door. A different man with a whip opened the door and went inside. Seconds later, Ash could hear cries of terror and pain. He shuddered, thankful that wasn’t him but also enraged that it was happening in the first place.

The two of them finally arrived at the end of the hall. The man held Ash back as he opened the door, revealing what looked like a movie set. Ash raised an eyebrow in confusion before being shoved rather roughly into the room.

“Got him,” the man growled to someone near the door- a woman in the same uniform. “Do you need anything else?”

“Yes,” the woman replied. “Stay here. We may need you in case he gets feisty.” The man nodded and loomed over Ash, who become the focus of the woman’s attention. 

“You may wonder why you’re here, and where Pikachu is,” she said. “We have determined you are unfit to care for Pikachu. Thus we will watch over him, along with your other Pokemon. You see, Pokemon- like the animals of our world- exist for their own reasons. We wish to teach that to children. That’s why you’re here. You’re going to help us make a little movie. Then, your future will be determined by how well you behave.”

Ash was speechless at first, unable to process what he just heard. Finally, rage seeped into his bones, and words flew out of his mouth before he could even think to stop himself.

“Whaddya mean I’m ‘unfit to care for Pikachu’?” Ash shouted. “He’s my Pokemon and my best friend! I don’t know what an ‘animal’ is, but I know Pikachu’s probably worried sick about me, and I’m worried about him! You let us go right now, you jerks!”

The woman clucked her tongue. “That won’t keep you alive,” she said darkly.

The man grinned and struck Ash with the whip a second time, this time on his bare back. He coughed and shuddered as he was flung forward. If these people were this cruel towards him, then what were they doing to Pikachu? What about his other Pokemon? The thought enraged him, and he rushed towards the woman- with her being unarmed and closer- ready to punch her.

“You let Pikachu go!” he roared.

Crack! The whip fell again, this time grazing his leg. Ash was startled by it, which stopped his attack. The woman backed away from him, but didn’t seem afraid.

“Twenty lashes,” she ordered. “That should do for now.”

The man attacked again, striking the poor boy in the back once, twice, three times. Each time caused such intense pain that Ash thought he’d black out until the next strike arrived. That woman didn’t mean that he was going to be hit twenty times for real, right? Yet she just watched grinning like a Persian that cornered its prey.

“You see,” she said casually. “We all exist for our own reasons. You aren’t from this world, so legally, we can do whatever we wish to you. We can even kill you. Do you understand the seriousness of this situation?”

“Screw you!” Ash shouted, managing to catch his breath between lashes.

The woman just looked at the man. “Add ten more lashes,” she instructed.

Ash didn’t say anything after that, because the man hit him so hard that he lost his balance and fell to the floor. He curled up in a ball to protect himself, but it did little. He felt blood trickle down his back after a few more lashes. The man didn’t stop. If anything, he seemed to be enjoying it as much as the woman. Ash wasn’t even sure if he finished beating him by the time he passed out.

+++++++ +++++++ +++++++ +++++++ +++++++

The next few days were torture. Ash spent most of his time in the tiny cell, where he was lucky enough to be fed three times a day. However, he was given only what his captors could spare him, mostly leftovers that they didn’t feel like finishing. There wasn’t any meat in any of the dishes, so Ash mostly survived on leftover salad. There was some spongy stuff in one of the salads that he didn’t like and spat back out. Once that was discovered, he had another encounter with the whip. After that, he ate whatever he was given.

He hated the whip.

Ash was only allowed out of the cell for rehearsals for the “movie”. First, his captors hosed him down with cold water, washing off any blood he accumulated. Then, they allowed him a bathroom break, but he was always being watched to make sure he didn’t try to escape and find Pikachu. He did that during his first chance to go to the bathroom. That ended pretty much as expected- he was caught and given fifteen lashes.

He hated the whip.

His captors would feed him the script for his part, forcing him to repeat it until the words were second nature. Apparently, he was playing himself as some kind of crazed circus ringleader. He noticed that he was saying multiple horrific things to Pikachu, which meant his buddy was likely still alive somewhere. The first day, he stopped reading in disbelief.

“I never put Pikachu in a PokeBall!” Ash insisted. “I tried only once, and he didn’t get in!”

“Just read your line,” the woman told him. It was more of a warning than an instruction, but Ash didn’t listen to the warning.

“How about I take that line and shove it-” Ash began.

Ash never got to finish. He was whipped so many times that he passed out again. The woman didn’t even give any order as to how many times, so it could have been a hundred lashes for all he knew. He woke up in his cell with only a bowl of salad and his bloodied back to keep him company.

He hated the whip.

Did Brock and Misty even know where he was? Ash wondered about that some nights, as he lay on the floor of his cell trying to get comfortable. Did they look for him? Maybe they moved on without him. No! His friends would look for him until the bitter end. If he was lucky, they’d rescue him. Heck, he’d be happy to see the Team Rocket trio at this point, even if they’d only be here to steal Pokemon or get in some other kind of trouble.

One day- feeling particularly small and desperate- Ash looked up at the man who came to bring him to rehearsals and asked, “Where are my Pokemon?”

He was beaten as a response. It was the last time he bothered asking. He hated the whip.

+++++++ +++++++ +++++++ +++++++ +++++++

This was Ash’s life for several days. He didn’t know how many. He lost track of time for the most part. His record of going without the whip was about three days before he saw what he was going to wear on set. It was a blue and red outfit covered in stripes with a giant hat that featured a black PokeBall. He also had props- a pickaxe and- of all things- a whip. His whip was clearly a toy, and the pickaxe was all plastic. He couldn’t hurt anyone with them if he tried.

“It’s ugly and stupid,” he insisted, afraid of mentioning the toy whip but not willing to roll over quietly and hold it.

In that moment, Ash’s record was broken. He hated the whip.

Finally, the day of filming came. Ash’s captors took very good care of him that day- so much so that even he was surprised. He was washed with warm, soapy water, and they even made sure to shampoo his hair, which hadn’t been done in ages. They also combed and trimmed his unruly hair. Ash hadn’t realized how long it had become while in captivity, as he had other, more pressing concerns about avoiding the whip.

The whip left scars on his back, which were hidden by the long-coat of the ridiculous outfit. Any visible markings were covered up with makeup. For some reason Ash could not fathom- as it seemed extremely counterproductive- some fake blood was added to his left cheek. With all these preparations done, Ash was led to the set, where he immediately wanted to throw up.

It looked like a route from his home region of Kanto after a serial killer passed by and murdered every living thing there. Trap with wide, steel-toothed mouths and barbed wire littered the place. Fake blood doused fake bushes and fake trees. 

But that wasn’t the worst of it. There were Pokemon there, cowering in a corner in fear of a man with a whip. Ash had never seen these three before. One was probably a Grass-type with its leaf tail. Its smooth skin was pierced by a needle, a tag pierced its tail, and its eyes were wide and dark. There was also a little orange and brown creature with a big nose. It once had ears, but those appeared to have been partially ripped off, the wounds healing badly. A metal collar sat around its neck, studded with spikes. The last had a white, furry head and a bare body coated in very real blood. Perhaps the Pokemon had fur there once, but it was ripped off.

Ash stared numbly at the three Pokemon. He learned the name of the earless one, because it kept screaming, “Tepig! Tepig!” The whip nearly stuck it, causing it to squeal. Ash was too tired to be angry at the display. He just wanted to cry, but couldn’t force tears out.

With Ash’s luck, the wicked woman who helped run the show was present, in a director’s chair across from this twisted display. She pointed to the only clean spot in the “field”.

“Stand there,” she ordered.

Ash did, trying to ignore the poor Pokemon even though he was now directly facing them. The man left the poor things alone, but they stayed huddling in one spot. He whispered something to another, rather reedy man, who left and swiftly returned with a fourth Pokemon in his arms. Once this creature was placed on the ground, and Ash was able to see what it was, he almost puked then and there.

It was Pikachu. His Pikachu. He could tell by how the Mouse Pokemon looked up at him with recognition. It was clear these people hurt the poor thing badly. A bite mark was taken out of his left ear. Bandages haphazardly covered Pikachu’s body, and Ash wasn’t sure if they were hiding other wounds or merely decorative. Blood splatters- real? fake?- coated his fur. Worst of all, a heavy metal collar with a broken chain sat around his neck.

“Pikapi?” Pikachu asked, walking towards him. “Pika! Pikapi!”

Ash wanted to pick Pikachu up and hug him, but a whip cracked from out of Ash’s line of vision, forcing Pikachu to back off. The woman then took control from a director’s chair, speaking into a megaphone.

“All right. This is it,” she said. “You know your lines, and you’re expected to follow them to the letter. The scene goes like this- Pikachu encounters his evil ex-Trainer. They exchange some words, then Pikachu zaps the wicked human into oblivion. Do this all correctly, and you get to go back home. Mess this up, and you end up dead in a dumpster someplace. Is that understood?”

Ash and Pikachu both nodded. Ash had read the script enough times not to be stunned by the fact that Pikachu had to electrocute him. In fact, his encounters with the whip- along with the fact that Pikachu’s Thunderbolt never caused him lasting harm- made that a mere footnote. A hundred emotions boiled within him- sorrow, rage, helplessness- but if he did what these people wanted, they’d let him go home and wouldn’t hit him any more.

Right?

“Okay then, action!” the woman cried, leaning back on her chair like it was a throne.

“Pikachu Pikapi!” Pikachu cried, leaping into his role. “Pikapi pi ka chu!”

Ash gulped, but said his line anyway. He could practically feel the eyes of his captors on his back.

“I-I’m here to recapture you,” he said unconvincingly. Somewhere off set, he heard the crack of a whip. He hated the whip. “You belong to me!” he added, punctuating it with his best evil cackle. An attempt from Team Rocket would have been more effective.

“Pikaaa!” Pikachu said, pointing a tiny finger at Ash. “Pikachu Pikapi chu pika pikachu!”

Ash had known Pikachu for years. He couldn’t understand what the Mouse Pokemon was saying, but he noticed that he was specifically pointing at the PokeBall logo on Ash’s hat. Was he accusing Ash of putting him in a PokeBall? He would never do that! He said as much himself that very first day of rehearsals. Pikachu hated PokeBalls, so Ash would never make him-

Crack! Again, Ash heard the whip. He stiffened. He had no choice but to say his line.

“I don’t hate you. I just don’t care,” Ash said as coldly as he could manage. The toy whip in his own hand felt like heavy lead, but he kept talking. “Have I ever shown an inkling of concern about you one way or the other?”

He had. How many times had he protected Pikachu from Team Rocket, or even an angry Spearow flock? Why couldn’t Ash protect him now?

Crack! Crack! Twice, Ash heard the whip, and it sounded closer. He hated the whip. So he just continued the script they force-fed him.

“I never asked you if you wanted to battle other Pokemon, or wanted to leave your PokeBall to stretch your legs,” Ash said on autopilot. “You’ve always just been a tool to me.”

Pikachu just stood there, frozen, staring at Ash with the saddest expression he’d ever seen on his Pokemon’s face. But he had to keep going. What if the whip struck him again? What if it hit Pikachu?

“The only thing that matters to me i- is-” Ash stammered. He felt a lump well up in his throat.

“Pikapi?” Pikachu whispered.

He could no longer keep the tears from falling. They obscured his vision as he glared from pickaxe to whip. He hated the whip. Both props tumbled to the ground as Ash fell to his knees. The pickaxe let out a low thud as it fell. Meanwhile, his big, stupid hat drifted to the floor like a leaf.

Pikachu blinked once. Twice. Then- without hesitation- he ran up to his distraught Trainer and leapt into his arms. Ash hugged his soft, tiny body. He started mumbling apologies to him and stroking his fur. 

“I’m sorry,” Ash whispered to him. “I’m so sorry.”

“Pikapi,” the little Pokemon said.

Ash smiled. He could tell all was forgiven. This stupid facility, the whips, and this freaky movie set weren’t going to destroy their friendship.

From the other side of the set, the three strange Pokemon watched curiously. The white headed one even dared to get a little closer to the display. The “Tepig” stayed in one place cowering, while the Grass-type Pokemon stood near it protectively.

“Snivy sni,” the Grass-type assured. The Snivy- for it had just said its own name- had tiny arms, but hugged Tepig as best it could.

“Cut!” roared the woman. “What are you doing, you stupid child?”

Ash heard footsteps behind him and heard the whip crack again. But Pikachu was in his arms. The little Pokemon was crackling with electricity. He wasn’t defenseless anymore.

“The only things that matters to me,” Ash said, his voice gaining strength, “are my Pokemon!”

“You stupid little-” the woman began.

“Pikachu! Use Thunderbolt!” Ash roared, his voice growing hoarse mid-sentence.

Pikachu wiggled out of his arms and faced the whips without fear. Ash gave him strength, just as he gave Ash strength.

“Pika-chuuuu!” the Mouse Pokemon cried, causing arcing lightning to fill every corner of the room.

The results were immediate. The humans all ran from the blast, including the woman, who almost knocked over the director’s chair as she fled. The black-hearted people tripped over each other to try and get away. A few were actually struck and launched a short distance, somewhat like Team Rocket did when they blasted off.

Ash didn’t bother watching them so much as he did the other three Pokemon. They hid behind a bush, shaking in fear. On impulse, Ash ran over to them and held them close to his chest.

“Osha oshawott?” the white-headed one asked. “Wott?”

Time seemed to freeze for a moment as the blast died down. Ash felt everything more acutely. He was hungry. The room steadily grew dimmer. The three Pokemon in his arms looked at him like they never knew affection before. Snivy seemed downright angry, but Tepig and Oshawott were curious. It was Oshawott who seemed least afraid of him. The little Pokemon pushed his paw on Ash’s nose and smiled- perhaps for the first time in months. Pikachu- his attack completed- scurried over to Ash and jumped on his head, looking down at the three Pokemon.

“Pikapi pikachu pi!” Pikachu said proudly.

Whatever he said soothed Snivy and Tepig somewhat. Ash smiled down at them.

“Um, if you don’t mind,” he said, “would you like to come with me? If we get out of here, I can get you to Nurse Joy. She can help take care of you. Then you can stay with me as long as you want. Sound good?”

Oshawott chirped excitedly, while Tepig just seemed surprised that anyone would show it any kind of concern. Snivy was cautious, but- noticing the tears forming in Tepig’s eyes, nodded its head.

“Sni snivy,” it said.

“Alright, let’s go,” Ash said seriously.

Ash released the three Pokemon, who followed him without another word. The first thing Ash did was search for his other Pokemon. He scanned belts and dove into pockets. Fortunately, he had success with the wicked woman who seemed to be the boss. In her pockets were four PokeBalls. Ash giddily threw them all into the air. Out came Bulbasaur, Squirtle, Charizard, and Pidgeotto, all of whom were rather confused at their dark surroundings. Ash patted each one on the head with a shaking hand, and even Charizard- normally disobedient- allowed Ash to pet him.

“Pikachu. Pika!” Pikachu shouted, pointing to the newcomers.

The result was immediate. Squirtle approached Oshawott and shook his paw, smiling goofily to cheer him up. Oshawott was shocked, but returned the favor. Bulbasaur looked from the abused Pokemon to the downed humans with disgust. Charizard’s expression was unreadable, but- whatever it was- it startled Tepig, who hid behind Snivy.

Pidgeotto was not as interested in the new Pokemon. Instead, she went up to Ash and nuzzled him as best as a giant bird could. Ash blinked, then ran his hand over the pink feathers on her head. They were softer than he remembered.

“I missed you too,” he said.

Pidgeotto suddenly perked up as one of Ash’s captors groaned. Ash jumped at that and took off towards the door leading to his cell. The eight Pokemon followed him, Pikachu jumping on his shoulder where he belonged. Bulbasaur extracted two vines, which Snivy took. It handed one to Tepig, who cautiously took it in its mouth. Oshawott had Squirtle to help it along, and didn’t need assistance from the vines.

The room containing the cells was bigger than Ash thought. In the center of the room was a table, on which sat his hat. He heard footsteps behind him, and so quickly seized the hat and fumbled away.

“Get back here, boy,” the lead woman growled, her voice hoarse. “I have to punish you!”

Pidgeotto was having none of that, however. She flew into the air and flapped her wings, summoning a Whirlwind attack. Ash didn’t see the results, but he heard the woman fall down. He couldn’t help but smirk.

“Nice work, Pidgeotto!” he cheered.

“Pidge! Pidge!” Pidgeotto chirped in reply.

Ash put his hat on as the chase continued. He looked over his shoulder to see a few whip-toting grunts. But his loyal Pokemon were ready. Bulbasaur summoned a spare vine to take a whip right from a grunt’s hand, while Squirtle unleashed a Water Gun at another. Charizard just plodded along, not protecting his Trainer, but not necessarily impeding the escape.

Ash darted down a small hallway, which got steadily darker and narrower. Soon, only Charizard’s tail lit the way, and only the footsteps of the angered guards reminded Ash that they were there. But soon, a pale blue light filled Ash’s vision. Another joined it as the hall expanded into a proper room. Before Ash and his Pokemon were many glowing portals, for lack of a better way to describe them. Each was topped with a floating image of a Pikachu-like creature and the word “PETA”. Flanking this logo were two identical images, which differed with each portal. 

Ash noticed one had two PokeBalls and charged towards it. He didn’t know it was the way home, at least not intellectually. He felt it in his heart. 

The procession was inches away from the portal when a whip cracked, causing Ash to freeze in terror. He wasn’t even struck, but the adrenaline was fading, and the whip could scare him again. The man holding the whip cackled and struck again, eliciting a roar.

“Charizard!” Ash cried, realizing that his Pokemon had just been struck.

Charizard was not like Ash. He didn’t cower in fear, and he wasn’t going to just take the abuse because he couldn’t do anything else. Instead, he spun around and grabbed the whip straight out of the man’s arm when he tried to hit him again. Flame burned around his muzzle, and Ash knew what he was going to do.

“Everyone! Go ahead!” Ash shouted.

Pidgeotto looked reluctant, but she led the smaller Pokemon through the portal, where they all vanished from sight. Only Pikachu stayed behind, perched on Ash’s shoulder. Ash rushed up to Charizard and shouted, “We need to go! Hurry, Charizard!”

“Oh, you won’t be going anywhere,” panted the wicked woman.

Ash gulped. How had the lead tormentor caught up? He hated her. Oh, how he hated her. But he knew that being caught on the wrong end of Charizard’s flames could end badly for her. Sure, he felt them himself and lived, but would she be as lucky?

The woman laughed as Charizard turned towards her. His flames illuminated her- crazed and grinning so much that her face nearly split in half. She was holding an oversized switch in one hand.

“All of you,” she snarled, “will suffer tenfold for what you’ve done to us!”

The woman threw the switch and laughed hysterically as the portals began to shrink away. Ash knew that his time was limited, but he wasn’t going anywhere without Charizard. He fumbled for the Flame Pokemon’s PokeBall as the guards closed in, whips cracking like a twisted symphony. Pikachu’s cheeks began to spark, preparing for another attack. The whips made Ash’s heart jump into his throat. He could feel himself turn pale. 

He hated the whips.

Just as Ash found the PokeBall he needed, Charizard unleashed a torrent of flame at the attackers, who shrieked and ran away. At the same moment, Ash recalled the orange dragon to his PokeBall. Turning to the portal, he found it was half its original size.

It wasn’t big. But perhaps a child could fit.

Ash took a flying leap at the portal. The woman shouted something, but he didn’t hear it over the whips that tried to slash at him. Pikachu held on tight as Ash tumbled through the portal and into a free-fall. He wasn’t sure that he did it successfully at first, and howled in terror as he realized that the ground dissolved out from under him.

Maybe this wasn’t the right idea, after all.

+++++++ +++++++ +++++++ +++++++ +++++++

Perhaps it was.

Gasping, Ash sat up to find himself in a forest at night. He glanced from left to right to find that he was surrounded by Pokemon. Tepig was sobbing, with Snivy doing its best to comfort the orange Pokemon. Oshawott was celebrating his freedom, attempting to run around in a circle with Squirtle. It would stop occasionally from pain, and Squirtle would stop, too, only to hype his new friend up once more. Bulbasaur and Pidgeotto turned to their Trainer, smiled, then began to talk to each other. Charizard was of course not present, for he was safe and sound inside his PokeBall.

On Ash’s chest was a familiar, yellow face. Pikachu jumped up and down, squealing in excitement.

“Pikapi! Pikapi!” Pikachu cheered.

“I’m back,” Ash realized, his voice dry and cracked. “I’m not there anymore.” He stroked Pikachu’s head until he realized something important. “Wait! Where are Misty and Brock? Oh man, they must’ve moved on without me. Can you help me look, Pidgeotto?”

Pidgeotto broke her conversation with Bulbasaur and nodded. Soon after, she took off to find Ash’s traveling companions. Ash himself took deep breaths. In. Out. In. Out. He turned to Tepig and Snivy to find Tepig almost passed out from terror.

“Hey,” he said softly. “It’s okay, Tepig. We’re safe now.”

Tepig blinked, looking from Snivy to Ash. Then, it turned its gaze to the sky and let out a strangled cry of its name. It was a cry not of terror, but of freedom. Ash couldn’t help but smile.

He hated the whip. But the whip was gone.

**Author's Note:**

> BONUS HAPPY/FLUFFY/SAPPY/HEADCANON STUFF BECAUSE I JUST DRASTICALLY ALTERED THE TIMELINE:  
> \- Ash eventually finds Brock and Misty again (with Pidgeotto’s help) in the next town over. He chooses not to divulge the horrors he’s seen and experienced, and instead focuses on getting help from Nurse Joy for the Pokemon. With her help, all the Pokemon are okay to go within three days. Ash spends every moment he can with them until they are healed.  
> \- “Ash, where did you get those ugly clothes?” “I have no idea.”  
> \- Misty eventually find out about the scars on Ash’s back. He doesn’t want to talk about them at first, but the truth ends up slipping out anyway after Brock gets involved to stop the resulting typical Ash vs Misty brawl. Ash ends up crying, but his friends console him. Brock and Misty are the only humans who know about the scars for the rest of this leg of his journey, and they all agree what happened was horrible and not to talk about it ever again.  
> \- Delia eventually finds out that Ash was whipped, and Ash has to stop her from attempting to stampede over to his captors’ dimension armed with only a frying pan and Mimey. Hilarity ensues, then hugs ensue.  
> \- Oshawott’s fur eventually grew back thanks to a special recipe of Pokemon food created by Brock, but the other scars on the Pokemon remained.  
> \- Tepig is a shy little girl who was afraid to battle at first, but became more comfortable with Ash and Pikachu’s help. He still mostly uses her to fend off Team Rocket, though.  
> \- Snivy kept attacking people who got too close to her for a long time, but eventually stopped. She’s still pretty no-nonsense and has a similar personality to a Snivy Ash trained in another timeline.  
> \- Oshawott and Misty became Literal Best Buds because Oshawott is a Water-type. He loves battling, eating, and playing pranks on everyone other than Misty.  
> \- Oshawott also retains a friendship with Squirtle and when the Tiny Turtle Pokemon leaves, it is a sad day for all.  
> \- When Ash chose to Oak his team when headed to Hoenn, the three Unova starters snuck after him, and he kept them on his team afterwards. Tepig never evolved, but Snivy became Servine and Oshawott evolved fully into Samurott.  
> \- Ash did get all his other Pokemon (sans the canon Unova starters) as he travelled through the various regions. Servine and Sceptile are buds. Buizel was rivals with Dewott (who had evolved once by that point). All three Unova starters protect/baby Chimchar. Samurott helped mentor Froakie. Tepig was scared of Charizard for the longest time, but finally became less afraid in Unova. Bonnie’s Dedenne and Tepig are buds.  
> \- Ash won the goddang Kalos League with help from Pikachu, Ash-Greninja and Samurott. However, he wiped out against the Elite Four.  
> \- What the heck is Alola? I mean- Ash traveled the region as he properly should, though he still caught the same Pokemon. Tepig eventually bonded with Lillie because they are both Soft Precious Fluff. He won that League as well as in canon. But where will the next region lead him? Who knows?  
> \- Nothing that traumatizing happened to Ash or his Pokemon ever again. Sometimes Ash still has nightmares, but his Pokemon always make him feel better, and vise versa. Ash has a bond with them that can never be broken.


End file.
